


The Doctor Goes To Hell, Literally.

by _crime lord_ (goddamnit_cherik)



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Angst and Humor, Attempt at Humor, Body Horror, Dark Doctor (Doctor Who), Doctor Who Feels, Doctor Whump, Eleventh Doctor Era, Gen, Hell Torture, Lovecraftian, Lovecraftian Influences, Psychological Horror, Time Lord Physiology (Doctor Who), Whump, dark!Doctor, i am sorry for your feelings, some scary imagery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-16
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-09-29 03:53:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17196005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goddamnit_cherik/pseuds/_crime%20lord_
Summary: Traveling alone REALLY isn't the Doctor's forte, and Hell isn't exactly his idea of fun either. When he finds himself buried neck deep in hellish politics and soul warping dealings, The Doctor is forced into a corner. The battle for one's soul is hard, and the reward is sweet. But the price of failure may be just what he needs to escape the literal Promised Land.





	The Doctor Goes To Hell, Literally.

**Author's Note:**

> if you're not prepared for some serious torture than this fic isn't for you lol. I made this because my life is shit and i need an outlet. I'm sorry for the Doctor (and you) in advance!

Of course he had to arrive in hell. It wasn't like he needed a simple day of relaxation or anything. No, Hell is good. Totally fantastic. 

The Doctor supposed his particularly gloomy thoughts had inspired the TARDIS to take him somewhere equally as gloomy. The underworld. Hades. The Promised Land. What better place to explore on your worst day than the worst place of all creation? Who knows, could be a chance to learn important life lessons or something.  

He took a tentative step outside of the police box and peeked around the corner. A huge cavern greeted him, stretching to almost unbelievable heights. Stalagmites rose from the ground in a creeping manner, twisting and grabbing at the sulfur tasting air. The awful quality of the oxygen almost induced a gag reflex, but luckily Time Lord physiology allowed for less than ideal oxygen intake. Holes in the earth opened and expelled all manners of gases, while different openings sported limbs and dragged away unsuspecting creatures into the unknown depths below. And these  _creatures._ All types of life forms were existing in this toxic place, some even thriving. The sheer amount of different species astonished even the Doctor's traveled mind. Some had wings, some tails and claws, and even more still had more than one head. Taking a leap of faith, The Doctor stepped all the way out of the TARDIS and did a complete one-eighty, absorbing every detail. 

That proved to be quite a miserable idea. 

As quick as a flash, black chains erupted from the ground and wrapped themselves around The Doctor's long legs, holding him in place. In response he whipped out his Sonic Screwdriver, but upon activating it and pointing at the coiling black chains, it did nothing. The shackles didn't budge, and he remained motionless and exposed. The Doctor  _hated_ being helpless, especially in such a hostile looking environment. Hell is pretty hostile. It looks pretty aggressive, considering the spikes and the fire and the ominous screams in the distance. Whoever's making those screams should try being quiet for a change. 

But before the Doctor could ponder Hell's unique qualities any further, he was approached by a frightful procession of demons riding on hell beasts similar to Earth's horses. 

"Ah, good, civilized people I can converse with! How do you do, uh...demons? Denizens of Hell?" 

The creature at the forefront of the ghastly procession dismounted his ride and approached the Doctor. It had quite a horrifying exterior, what with the bulging fly eyes and proboscis. It took a few moments to examine him before speaking. 

"I am Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell, The Lord of the Flies." 

"Oh, I read that book! Very exciting, bad ending though." 

"This is my procession of followers. We detected your arrival on the lowest rung of Hell. Tell me, how did you manage to infiltrate the most god-forsaken circle of Hades without alerting the Seven Princes to your presence?" Beelzebub's voice was hideously raspy and he held onto his 'e' and 's' sounds a little bit too long. It grated on the Doctor's ears. 

"Oh well that might not be in my best interest to explain, so I shall just say this. I have a spaceship." 

It was difficult to pinpoint any kind of expression on Beelzebub's face, but the faint look of shock seemed to cross over his demonic face. He paced in front of the Doctor in agitation. 

"Well then, you must be an alien intruder. We don't  _get_ many of those, since this is the literal Underworld, where all evil souls go to be eternally tortured. So I trust that you understand why we don't get many live extraterrestrial visitors." 

"Yes, perfect reason to never ever set foot here! But uh...my spaceship is a tad broken and takes me every which way. She took me here for reasons I may never hope to understand! Maybe we can broker an agreement for my expulsion?" The Doctor talked fast, hoping to breeze right past the subject of the TARDIS. It would be catastrophic if the armies of Hell got hold of _any_ Time Lord technology, never mind a TARDIS!  

"I think there will be no need for an  _agreement,_ as you said. This is Hell; we make deals for any and all souls that end up here, regardless of how they may arrive. Now that you're here, your soul is now forfeit to any demon that may break you in eternal torture. Once we have you processed and properly labeled, it's off to the fields you go." 

   The Doctor gaped, not entirely grasping the gravity of his situation. Because of a silly mistake he was supposed to be subjected to any and all torment Hell could throw at him? Not cool. 

"Now hold on for  _just_ a moment. I'm the Doctor, the last of the Time Lords, the Oncoming Storm! You can't just shove me in with all your other prisoners!" 

Beelzebub emitted a low buzzing noise akin to a laugh. "You have no agency here,  _Time Lord._ You follow our rules now, and our primary rule states that any and all intruders are subject to the same treatment as ordinary souls that arrive here via death. You can of course end your torture, but there are only two options." 

The Doctor sighed quite dramatically and pouted at the fly demon. 

"I'll bite, what are my options for ending my never ceasing torment?" There was perhaps too much dry wit placed in that last sentence. 

"The preferred method is of course pledging your soul to your torturer. You may have heard of this in popular media. Once you've signed the proverbial contact, the demon may do whatever it pleases with you. On the bright side, you're finally free of the eternal torture!" Something resembling a smirk graced the ugly demon's facial features. "There is another option, but that one is highly unpleasant." 

"Signing away my soul to a creature of Hell is  _highly unpleasant_ so any other alternative you can give me would be greatly appreciated, thanks!" 

"Well, prolonged exposure to Hell in all its unbridled fury has the penchant to change one's "outlook." Human, and by extension  _alien_ souls are not meant to be subjected to such extreme levels of pain at such a constant rate, you see. At some point, every soul damned to this wretched place breaks free of its bondage, one way or another. We, as the rulers, only hope you give away your soul before such events occur." 

The Doctor's mind raced and whizzed with all the potential explanations, but he needed more information to make a definitive answer blossom. 

"That all sounds terribly dreadful, so could we just skip to the part where I meet your master and demand he let me go at once?" 

Beelzebub and his cronies stirred uncomfortably. 

"Why yes, though you will find that he shares the same view. Order is the only way Hell survives, and Lord Lucifer knows this to be true more than any." 

The Doctor made a wild gesture with his arms and smirked. 

"Oh yes, perfect! Take me to your Lord and Savior, Lucifer Morningstar! I can't wait to see how he reacts to me; I hope he remembers our last meeting!" He muttered that last part to himself, as not to alarm the demons surrounding him. At least this encounter was of a familiar type, and therefore manageable.

"What madness must strike you! You seem to posses an unusual excitement to see our Lord." Beelzebub dissipated the cold black chains with a nonchalant wave of the hand and hissed a violent order to a gaggle of demons. They restrained the Doctor with surprising strength and held him in place while Beelzebub addressed the rest of the wicked procession. He buzzed in a strange, incomprehensible language that even the TARDIS refused to translate. It was harsh and unforgiving to the ears, but it seemed to get the message across. Once the infernal chatter ceased, Beelzebub turned back to face the Doctor. 

"You will now be taken to stand in the Infernal Court, before Lord Lucifer. He will determine the severity of your punishment and the lucky demon to be put in charge of you." Before the Doctor could answer, the fly devil gestured to the ones holding him. Replying with perfect obedience, the Doctor was pushed forward and released to walk freely. But before even a thought of escape could cross his mind, the demons had pitchforks to his back. They poked him if he did not walk fast enough, or if he delayed in any way to examine a particularly interesting landscape, of which there were plenty of in Hell. After a long, indeterminate amount of time spent walking, they finally arrived at their destination. It appeared to be a gargantuan coliseum, held up by pillars of fire. The way this place functioned seemed so alien, but the Doctor's Otherworldly senses could bear to look upon it. One of the many advantages of trans-three dimensional eyes. 

But before he could fully process the wonderful otherness of the coliseum, he was shoved roughly forward. He irritably rubbed his back, feeling the indents the demon's trident had left there. Rude. 

"Go to the very center of the Theater. The Devil will see you now." The Doctor looked back at his captors, whether out of curiosity or worry he didn't know. All their faces were colored with amusement and morbid curiosity. Kind of like himself, he supposed. Turning back to face forward, he began his walk to the dead center. He chose not to say a word, but nevertheless, his mind was full to bursting with observations and theories and conclusions. He could feel old habits nibble at the corners of his thoughts, and he almost leaned to whisper in his companions ear. 

Oh.

But as quickly as these dreadful thoughts closed him in, the silence was broken by a bloodcurdling screech. In a jerking motion he spun around defensively, but understood immediately. The hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of demons in the stands were screeching at him. All nature of sound, human-like screams, eerily convincing Dalek yells, and Silurian hissing could be heard from all corners of the coliseum. It pierced the Doctor in an unusual fashion, as if biting into his center, his core. It took all of his willpower not to drop to his knees and hold his head. Hell is a lot less fun then he thought. 

**"Face me, Time Lord of Gallifrey."**

Hardly believing the words he was hearing, The Doctor focused up again. The demons mercifully ceased their incessant screeching and turned simultaneously to face the newest figure. And what a sight this new player was. 

"Aha, so you  _do_ know who I am! I knew someone around here was sensible!" The Doctor flailed his arms about wildly, trying to shake off some of the raw fear this creature was giving off. His eyes weakly protested at him to stop looking at the regal nine foot tall figure. The sheer amount of dimensions this being lived in surpassed even the Doctor, and that frightened him. The Devil was even more Alien than his horned visage might have you believe; it was like a human looking down on an ant while that ant looked down at a bacteria. 

**"I would never willingly forget you, Doctor. However idiotic these _others_ are, you have an undeniable history. I knew you'd join us down here; it was only a matter of  _time."_**

The Doctor just pointed at him him weakly, acknowledging his play on words. 

**"And how happy it makes me to see you finally here. But we shall doddle no longer with useless words; I've seen your silver tongue in action, Doctor. I know better than to give you time to talk. Let the trial commence!"**

The Doctor was about to retaliate with a biting sarcastic remark, but unfortunately the Black Chains from earlier entrapped him once again. This time they made sure to close themselves around his mouth: no more talking or trying to defend yourself. He was fully at the mercy of the Great and Esteemed Court of Hell. He only raised one eyebrow in response. 

**"You have trespassed on Hell's deepest layer uninvited and unwelcome. You have resisted arrest and belittled the armies of Hell; whatever you may say. You brought Alien technology here with no clear motive, so we naturally must assume the worst. And perhaps best of all, you deserve to name this place as your final area of resting. You have committed numerous atrocities, some too horrible for not even the Devil's tongue. But the most egregious, perhaps the coldest crime of all. The total and utter annihilation of the Planet Gallifrey and its war partner Skaro, along with every single man, woman, and child living there. Billions of children screamed. And for this, you must be punished; I, Lucifer Morningstar, Old Scratch, the Adversary, put forth an eternity of torture as fitting retribution. All in favor?"**

Slowly, the entire coliseum filled with demon's raising their hands until there wasn't a single gap in the ocean of arms. A unanimous vote. The Devil turned to the Doctor, his shimmering robes moving slightly. 

**"That settles it. The denizens of Hell have spoken. You will spend an entirety here in Hell, suffering under no particular demon. A new one will assigned everyday until we come to the end of the line. The cycle will continue until you offer your immortal soul to Hell. Any questions?"**

The Doctor raised an eyebrow again and muttered angrily. 

The black chains receded away from his mouth, allowing him to speak again. he licked his lips before speaking. 

"What makes you think that I will ever give away my  _soul?_ Time Lords can withstand immense torment, like you wouldn't  _believe,_ "Old Scratch." I want you to know that I will never stop fighting, not for a  _second._ And when I do eventually make my daring escape, Hell itself will wish it never encountered me." The Doctor's voice quivered with barely concealed rage, seething, dripping hate he usually only felt for the Daleks rose to the surface. His masterful self control was only just enough to contain it.

The Devil hopped from foot to foot, clearly antsy at the Time Lord's anger. At least that was one small victory; he made the Devil wince. 

**"Take him to Tartarus."** The Devil waved at a random demon to take the Doctor away. **"Oh, and one more quick thing Doctor! I'd like to thank you personally for sending all those Evil Time Lords down here. Thousands of new souls, all in one moment. It was like Christmas for our torturers. A goddamn nightmare for our processors though. Say hi to them for me."**

At this precise moment, The Doctor would have given anything to cut down the Devil. His immortal soul, his rule of Pacifism, his TARDIS,  _anything._ He just wanted to see the Devil's heart ripped out and staining the ground. He held onto this moment of pure and untarnished hatred and pulled it close. He had a feeling he was going to need it.    

       

? 

 

The first day, if you could call it a day, of torture began predictably enough. They, being the demons, tied the Doctor to an uncomfortable dentist-like chair. The Devil had ordered his Regeneration ability disabled, so there goes his first daring plan of escape. Of course, it wasn't his only plan, but it was the one his mind kept coming back to. 

"I hope you like fire, because we're starting with that." A demon with curlicue horns hissed and laughed, aware of the obviousness of his own remark. 

"Yes, yes, Hell and fire, how hilarious. I bet you're very proud of yourself." The Doctor's sarcastic nature often came to the surface when in times of peril. What else was new?

The red skinned demon chuckled again and brandished his fire-tipped spear with eccentricity.

"Are we sitting comfortably?" 

Without hesitation he drove the flaming weapon into the Doctor's left most heart. And he twisted. Twisted until only a hollow cavern was left behind. The spear scraped against the walls of the entry wound as it raised out into the open air. The flames hadn't died down a single bit. In fact, they seemed to swell even higher at the taste of fresh blood.

And soon the other heart was pulp against the Doctor's sternum. Strangely, the Doctor continued to breath and experience the blinding, white hot pain instead of dying on the spot. Blood still flowed, despite the utter impossibility of it. The magick of Hell; the torture never stops, not even when your own heart had. He couldn't hear his own screams over the din of the souls around him. 

"I could tell you enjoyed that. Why don't we try that again, but a little lower this time?"

 Oh Rassilon, this was going to hurt. 

And it did. The demon turned its spear to the side and slid it along the Doctor's spindly legs, creating an image so powerful death would have been a blessing. Flesh was slowly stripped away until only muscle and glimmering bone could be visible. The fire burnt and blazed until it fried away all the layers. The Doctor was well and truly naked, devoid of any defense. The spears, swords, and daggers tinged with flame inflicted such terrible agony. No longer was the Doctor screaming with one voice, all  _thirteen_ screamed along with him. His terrible anatomy violently rejected what was happening to it; with the physical attributes being stripped away, there was only what was underneath now. A swirling insanity that only barely cohered to geometry laid bare on that dentist chair. 

And it  _did hurt._

Things were separated from other things that shouldn't be possible to imagine ever working together. Eyes were scooped out, only for the demon to encounter another spare set in the back. Tangible shadows were stretched and pulled and  _eviscerated._ Phantom limbs were revealed and just as promptly discarded. Bones were cracked in half and organs were  _eaten._ The pain was never ending, and the dozens of voices only got louder. 

_And this was only the first day._

 

  ?

 

It only got worse from here. Each day the demons refined their tactics and the Doctor only got angrier. Instead of taking minutes to get to the underneath  _area,_ they took hours. Instead of letting his voices ring out in unison, they stymied his yelling. Any demon was welcome to try their hand at the Doctor. Any demon who could get his thirteenth voice to join in the quickest got an extra soul. Anyone who could get his shadow limbs to lash out in the angriest way could get a free Human. This system of bartering and playing with him only stoked the fire within the Time Lord's hearts. He nursed his hatred of his captors, feeding it sweet nothings of revenge and promises of the burning of a thousand worlds. He couldn't remember when he last  _spoke._ No creature here deserved to hear him utter even a single word. 

But that simple denial only led to more torment. 

Today was water. Water in the lungs, water in the eyes, water under the fingernails, water went anywhere they could think of shoving it. This could be tolerable, if it didn't also include relentless bullying from his torturer.  

"Think about it, Medical Man. You could put an end to all this water boarding, if only you'd just give me your soul. Just a little soul, you won't even need it. Lucifer knows you're not getting out of here any time soon." 

More saltwater under the fingernails. Wonderful. 

"I wonder what a Gallifreyan soul tastes like? I bet it's salty with a sweet after taste. I imagine you'd know, since you sent a billion of them here." 

Heat was building up. This shouldn't be making him so mad. This remark was no different from a million other ones like it. There should be no reason this was the comment that broke him. The heat was approaching unbearable.   

       "Moreover, I think I might try feeding you one, one of these days. We certainly have a surplus! You do look quite peckish, you haven't been feed in close to one million years!" 

_One Million years?_ He had spent over a million years enduring the finest torture Hell had to offer? 

"Leviathan! Do you have any left over Time Lord souls? I think our little Med School graduate over here would like to see what it tastes like!" 

It was only when they actually did drag over a limp, lifeless corpse over that he realized they were being completely serious. What was left of his drowned eyes could see the timeline of this bedraggled and helpless Time Lady cling to the white and shining soul. When the demons wrenched it from its owner and grasped it in his own blood stained claws the Doctor drew in a shaky breath. The roaring fire wore away at his walls and begged for release. The flames licked every surface and cried out for retribution. Revenge for this fallen Lady. Wrath for his felled home world. Vengeance for his cracked and broken exterior. Cold fury for everything he had lost in the meantime. These were the things that now consumed the Doctor's being. He was the Oncoming Storm no longer. The Storm had arrived at last. 

"Open wide, Time Lord! Tell us what it tastes like!" The blue skinned fiend grabbed the Doctor and attempted to wrench open his jaws. when it finally did pry them open, it found its hand enclosed by freshly grown sharpened canines. Its scream was a soft melody to the Doctor's ears. 

As easy as thoughtlessly sliding out of bed in the morning, the Doctor ripped himself away from his restraints and stood up straight for the first time in one million years. He found his legs felt different, stronger and more changeable. A headache quickly overtook him and he had to lean against the chair that had previously imprisoned him. After a few moments his head felt heavier. His skin felt not quite right, and everything seemed to be more durable. But the real realization came when his shoulder blades pierced him with sudden pain. This sensation did not hurt exactly, but was a peculiar experience.

They elongated, and grew out from his back. He leaned over and put one hand to the floor to steady himself. Was his arm supposed to be tinted slightly red? But this observation was forgotten as soon as the new appendages stopped growing and instead flexed with newfound power. The Doctor found that he could stretch and spread these new  _things,_ almost as if...oh. _Oh._

"I have wings!  _Wings!"_

Wasting no time, the Doctor tried something out. He slowly flapped his dragon-like wings until he was flying above the two demons who had, not two minutes ago, been trying to feed him a Time Lady's immortal soul. The mention of an immortal soul now gave him an odd feeling, almost one of possessiveness. Like he had to have them, had to hoard them from all others who would attempt to take them for themselves. 

_"That is not yours to have."_

The Doctor, quick as an avenging angel, scooped up the pulsing circular light that was the Soul, and cradled it close. He rested a clawed hand on it, determined not to let anyone take it from him. As if they could. 

"B-but this hasn't happened in c-centuries." 

At the sound of the blue skinned demon's voice, the Doctor turned and stared him down. 

"What isn't possible, fiend?" 

" _You!_ No soul has transformed like this in centuries! They all usually give themselves up before they get to this point."

Having nothing of this useless chattering, the Doctor took matters into his own hands. Literally. 

"Explain, now." 

The demon stuttered supremely nervously. "Uh, there is a law of Hell that states that any soul, Human or otherwise, doomed to Hell will eventually crumble under its corrupting influence. In essence, they'll all turn into demons eventually. That's why there are so many demons in Hell in the first place. But we get the majority of them to give away their soul before that happens. Only the most resilient actually transform. And furthermore, they usually only transform into a low level demon like an imp or something. But you've defied all our natural laws and gone straight to Greater Demon status. That's unheard of!" The ice like demon expressed his shock with his flamboyant hand movements. It was almost charming. 

The Doctor tried desperately to process this information. He examined his own clawed hands and armored skin in morbid fascination. A complete metamorphosis had taken place; even his inside being and core had been fundamentally changed. The previously dark and dim cavern had brightened to daylight-like brightness. His hearts beat with fire surging through his blood. The fire that had slowly built up in him throughout the years had finally bloomed and took root. Every inch of his being now yearned for something. Something indescribable. 

"You know what I'll do now, I hope?" 

"Um... no?" 

"Kill you of course. And any other demon who ever laid his filthy claws on me this last million years." 

The frost covered fiend's eyes widened in despair and fear. "But you c-can't! Almost every demon in Hell tried their hand at you! You'd be slaughtering everyone!" 

A twinkle of something resembling evil mischievousness sparkled in the Doctor's eyes. His mouth contorted into a wicked smirk. 

"I know. Why do you think I waited this long to break free?" 

 

 

 


End file.
